A.R.T.F E A T U R E S + I N S P I R A T I O NA R T I S T I C & A R E O L A R E S T O R A T I V E T A T T O OM A G A Z I N EM E E T T H E G A M E C H A N G E R SO F R E S T O R A T I V E T A T T O O !N O V . 1 1 , 2 0 2 1A N N U A L
A.R.T. Mission Statement We believe that every survivor needs and deservesa great tattoo that is artistic and technically sound. We believe that every Tattooist deserves the trainingand support to be able to create the best work possible. We are here to provide that support.A.R.T. Annual Magazine© Stacie-Rae 11/2021 @stacierae.art @heARTists.ink @NIPPLEBACKSNO permissions granted, not to be copied or shared in part or in fullheARTists.ink, www.Stacie-Rae.com, www.NIPPLEBACKS.com
Stacie-Rae, daBossTatSoul's Billy ChenSamantha RaeAisling MahonLexi Rae HannaLiz CookNicole RizuttoChristina Siegel-JohnsonJayd HernandezLou RubinoFeatures:
TATTOOING SCARS:- Tattooing Trauma Sites- Machine + Needle Choice- Pigment Retention- Emotional TriggersSACRED SPACE:- Healing Tattoos- Studio = Sanctuary- Holding Space- Breathing Techniquesfor Trauma ReleaseHYPER-REALISM:- The only way to Heal- Simple Steps - Reduce Trauma to Skin- Create a Natural resultSCAR COVERUPS:- Composition + Balance- Sightlines + Flow to take the eye PAST the scar- Technical Challengesa.r.t. fromthe heart.healingbeginswith greattattooing!
T A T S O U L ' S L E A D I N G M A NGamechangers Unite!What do you love most about the tattoo industry?I love working with artists - As a creative myself, it is always a pleasure to discuss art and creating anddesigning products to support all artists!Why is needle quality so important to you?Needles are a key component to ensuring safety for the client and allowing for high quality tattoos for theartist. There are only a few materials that go into the skin, and it starts with the needle. With TATSoul's 30-point inspection process, we strive to yield 100% perfection when you open a box of needles. This includesdetailed quality control and double checks to ensure needles are always consistent, sharp, and sterilizedproperly.Where would you like to see needles influence tattooing evolution more?I look forward to seeing more needle configurations and tips to evolve in specific needs in tattooing. I believetapers, needle diameters, how the configurations are constructed all have a purpose for specific tattooapplications. It's figuring out which configuration makes the most sense for certain applications.Do you think that we can improve even more on medical tattooing?Medical tattooing can always be improved and elevated. I feel the tattoo and permanent make up industryhas improved so much in the last 10 years and will continue to do so in advances in ink, machines, needles,furniture, and other categories.How much of an impact has being tattooed made on your life?Tattooing has made a huge impact on my life because it has allowed me to meet so many amazing artists inthe industry. On top of that, it has been a pleasure for me to serve the industry by having amazing partnersand teammates design and distribute premium products.What are you most looking forward to in the next chapter of your journey with TatSoul?My team and I look forward to continuing to innovate and carry premium products for the tattoo andmedical tattoo industry. I am extremely excited to be able to collaborate with our own brand and others onexciting new products to serve the industry!
*MASTECTOMY*EVOLUTION*DESIGNMEDARTPROPerfect PracticeOnce you have yourstyle coming togetheron paper, you'll wantto see if you cantattoo it as well asyou can draw it!Become super familiar with yourA.R.T. Steps on paper, fine tune yourtattooing to match your drawing andyou'll be ready for in-person training! Or just build what your traineralready taught you in person!Master ScarsIt's actually quite easy tocause more damage toscars by tattooing them! It's important to buildyour hand strength up asit is the precursor to feelSeeing a need for a practice skin that helped tattooists learnmore about scar tissue was a huge breakthrough for Samanthaand Stacie-Rae. Dreamed up and sketched on a flight over theatlantic, when Stacie-Rae landed she sent it to Samanthaimmediately and asked if something like this was possible. At that time she didn't realize how extensive Sam's experiencewith Latex, Molds, Sculpting and silicone pours was. Samanthasaid she'd start working on a mold right away and had craftedsomething within a few weeks that was nothing short of magical.Now, we have a tangible object that we can use to explain howtissue damage might express and how to tattoo each differenttype of damage. From angles to depth and speed.When we are implanting pigment into compromised tissue, wehave to pay close attention to how that tissue receives it andwhat it's telling us back. It's not about what we DO to the scartissue, it's about HOW the tissue receives what we do.In order to excel in this challenge, we must first have a solidfoundation in our skills. We must then build the strength requiredto develop feel, and really start to understand biofeedback.That is why we must do this training in-person with a scar tissuemaster, and why this type of focused practice can help us startto build that strength to develop that feel!Your practice time is so important! Work smarter, not harder!by Samantha and Stacie-RaeFeel is so important, as you learn to readthe biofeedback in scars so that you canadjust your technique to the tissue'sunique needs to retain with minimaltrauma.Color CombinationsWhat a perfect way topractice your colorblending and see howit will look on differentskin tones! We reallydid think of everything,It's no wonder we are being copied by ourpeers, but we are the ones who wrote thepatent because we came up with themfirst! The highest quality we've ever seen,these textured surfaces are almost liketattooing real people!MEDARTPRO
A.R.T.H E A R T I S T S P O T L I G H T M A Y , 2 0 2 1ARTISTIC & AREOLA RESTORATIVE TATTOO
THE GODDESS REVIVALT O H E L P H E A L T H EA N C I E N T D I V I N EF E M I N I N E W O U N DFor too long, women have been asked to give and give. Breast cancer is a sickness of the nurturing space ofthe auric field. A society that demands too much hastaught women to put themselves last. This is the woundthat we must heal. To heal it in others, we must firstheal it in ourselves. For Divine Balance in life, startswith our work. This is our spiritual calling as tattooists!
'Permanent' vs 'Cosmetic'*Permanent vs cosmetics implies they are either the same ORopposite. Can cosmetic pigments be permanent? Yes. Aretattoos permanent? Yes. Can it fade? probably.It depends alot on who is making the pigment, and how - EverAfter makes them as permanent as humanly possible. - ALOT of chemistry and science goes into making eachpigment go into the skin and stay in the skin properly (balanceddispersment that the skin will accept readily and heal wellwithout allergic reaction). - As regulations change we have to keep up with regulationswhile we also develop new methods to stay ahead ofanticipated regulations. We are one of the companies helping toset the standards and we are fundamentally a part of makingthings better for this industry that we love so much. - SO much chemistry is involved in this, and each brand has acompletely different process. - Ever After is inspired from the traditional formula of eternalbut adapted specifically for permanent cosmetics, sensitive skinand trauma'd skin. Stricter Tolerances and more types oftesting done with combinations of proprietary. Even our testingmethodology is proprietary in itself. Its about creating happiness, and its aboutchanging lives - if a product can ever have a'soul', and if Ever After can achieve that,then that is what we are fighting for. LIZCOOKTell us a bit more about the term 'Lightfast'The quality of pigments and how lightfast they aredepend on pigment load (amount of pigment), and thesize it's been milled at. Different levels andquantifications affect areas with sun exposure versusareas that won't see light as often. There is potential forpigment to fade if it doesn't have the correctlightfastness even if its not in a high exposure area.Every company has its own unique standards andmeasurements which are proprietary.Because we are tattooers also, we know that peoplehave to take a chance on their pigment choices.Tattooists have to see the product at work and theirpersonal experience of the product builds or breaks trustin the company. We make sure that everything, everybottle, every color, that we put out there has to live upto its purpose. We understand that people have to justtrust us with their work, and we don't take that lightly.We honor and value the feedback and experience of thepeople that use our products and do everything that wecan to make it what people need it to be and whatpeople want it to be so they can do their best work."The purposeand biggerpicture ofwhat we aretrying toachieve as acollective isthe soul ofwhat we do."
heARTists all around the world, changing lives!
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A.R.T.H E A R T I S T S P O T L I G H T J U L Y , 2 0 2 1ARTISTIC & AREOLA RESTORATIVE TATTOO
Fundamental tattooing training through traditionaltattooing apprenticeship & tattooing experience. College fine & commercial arts classes: Surgical technologist career 11+ years. Years of experience and hands on knowledge withmastectomy & reconstruction surgery. Kidney cancer survivor- had multiple surgeries. Through my own cancer journey I understand thefears, traumas and healing a person may experience.Using both of my strongest talents and skillscombined for breast cancer survivors through AreolaRestorative Tattooing.A natural drive to help others, whether in theoperating room or tattoo chair. Dedicated to being anadvocate for others.Connected with plastic surgeons I’ve worked with inthe operating room to who saw the need for aproperly trained tattooist to offer next level tattoos fortheir patients that are safe, solid and natural lookingnipples. - Including figure drawing, color theoryTattoos - Please do not report
I’ve known I had a natural talent for drawing at a young age and promised myself to have art inmy life in some way. The art form & world of tattooing attracted me and in 2003 I started mytattoo apprenticeship. Due to a kidney cancer diagnosis, tattooing was set aside to focus on myhealth. With all the ups and downs with my cancer journey my heart pivoted to dedicate to themedical field. I became a certified surgical technologist in 2009 working as part of the OR team. From orthopedic surgery, neurosurgery, general and plastic surgery I have over eleven years ofexperience in the operating room. My connection with plastic surgeons and talks about my pasttattooing career exposed me to the areola restorative tattooing world. I knew I could combineboth strengths of art and medicine to offer nipple tattoos for survivors. Since 2019 I have hadthe honor of helping their patients during their journey while performing nipple tattoos withthe highest skill level a tattoo artist can offer. The universe guided me to this career in restorative tattooing when it was the right time toenter it. I needed the beginning framework with my tattoo career, my own cancer battle and abountiful career in the surgical field. I am a helper, an advocate and an artist. Being a areolarestorative tattoo artist is my true purpose.Issue 6 July 28, 2021Now I am going back to my traditional tattoo foundation and looking forward toworking on some mastectomy scar cover-up projects!Nicole Rizzuto, NMR Medical Tattoo LLC
N I P P L E B A C K STemporary Nipple/Areola Complex TattoosPowerful Emotional Healing in 30 Seconds!She'll never want to be without them!w w w . N I P P L E B A C K S . c o m
DEBBIE HONEY REBECCAPerfect for lighter skin tones. Wecan get away with more subtledetails and color combinations infair skin. The challenge thenbecomes making sure the blend issoft and light.Medium skin tones require abit more contrast andthoughtful design. The HONEYis a great style for asian,spanish, and middle-easternskin tones.Darker skin tones requireVERY strong contrast andless detail. See how thisstyle looks on darker skintones from a distance tounderstand how this works.Use the diagram sheet to start a conversation with yourclient about what she remembers her own nipples looking like. You can also discuss color range and details that she likes.All of these little things empower your client to get a lookshe loves while helping show you how to achieve it best.
A.R.T.H E A R T I S T S P O T L I G H T O C T O B E R , 2 0 2 1ARTISTIC & AREOLA RESTORATIVE TATTOO
Graduated from Wright State University in 1996 with I worked in a variety of hospital areas including: Burnunit, Neuro/Trauma, NICU, and OncologyI also have 10 years of plastic surgery nursingexperienceIn my former life, I did "nurse tattooing " which left lessthan desirable resultsIn 2014, I began to train with professional body artistsand learned everything I had been doing was wrongI quit nursing to commit to only providing the besttattooing. I was ART certified in 2017I now tattoo 5 days a week at 2 different cancercenters and in a physician office setting, all located inColumbus, OhioI currently have approximately 25 physicians that refertheir patients to me for restorative tattooingmy vast knowledge of different types of breastreconstruction and adjunctive therapies combinedwith my plastic surgery experience makes me uniquein the tattoo realmI've done tissue expander fills, pulled drains, andassisted with various reconstructive procedures in mytime as a nurse a Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing degreeTattoos - Please do not report
I named my business Living Story Tattoo because typically during the tattoo process people tellme a lot of what is happening in their lives and many times they tell me the story of their breastcancer journey. Every woman has a unique story and I am lucky enough to have these told tome during our time together, which can be very therapeutic. The nipple tattoos can help closethis chapter of their story so to speak. That doesn't mean the fears go away or things are back tonormal of course. There are still doctor's appointments, scans and surveillance visits... thosethings aren't going away but the tattoos can help at least hopefully restore a bit of feelingwhole again, physically and emotionally. I really love hearing about future plans the most andwhat they are looking forward to.Human touch, Healing touch. We have lost a lot of this due to Covid. This is an intimateinteraction and I am laying my hands on someone that has put all of their trust in me. It is a bigresponsibility and this tattooing must be done with care.I love that my hands have the ability to help someone heal. I have used my hands to help healpeople for the majority of my life and and I continue to do so everyday when I tattoo someone. Idwell in between the ART world and the medical world, and for me it's perfect. Tattoosabsolutely are healing.Issue 7 Oct. 20, 2021Lastly, the reveal. It's a visual experience for both of us. Her laying eyes on the finished tattoos and seeing something thatwas once taken away can be pretty breathtaking. Happy tears are a daily occurrence in my office. Meanwhile, I amwatching this transformation literally unfold right in front of my eyes and it is absolutely spectacular!Christina Johnson-Seigel
Choose Your Look Book!Empower ClientsBreast Cancer Survivors can TRY ONTemporary Areola Tattoos and reconnect toAllow clients to take back their body on theirterms, by putting the power in their hands!Use the book to make it happen:- Stencils of each style- Grey reference to achieve thedepth and texture characteristics- Needle Choices and how to applythe tonal value range for realism!- Everything you need for yourA.R.T. work to be stunning!
THE OLD-SCHOOLWAY!BECOME ASTENCIL PROphotocopy andtraceYou can copy and re-usethese diagrams for therest of your career. Thisis the DEBBIE style, butits just a template to useas guidance, then addflair as you like.Photocopy the sheet smaller or larger tohave a variety of sizes to choose from. Usethe powdered side of hectograph paper, andsimply trace over the stencil with a ball pointpen. The stencil powder sticks to the back ofthe paper and there you go! Stencil is Ready!prep the skinClean and prep the skinaccording to your studiocleanliness and OSHAguidelines. Wear gloveswhen applying the stenciland doing any correctivedrawing on the skin.Tattoo Stencils are a necessity for any tattooist doing an artistic design. Paramedical artistry is no different. Having a guideline to follow helps youfocus on the real challenge of this work - the damaged tissue! Since allof your focus needs to be on reading the compromised skin, its importantto take the guesswork away in the other areas.Never use a circle template. As far as I know, there are no NAC's on amature woman that are the shape of a perfect circle. So what? Well, if it doesn't occur in real life, then it won't look natural onthe body. Thats what I like to call a 'tell' - that tells the onlooker that it isa tattoo rather than a real nipple. In this case, your client is the foreverviewer of this artwork. Her standards are high, and yours should be too.Why is this so important? Because the ONLY way to facilitate healing foryour client is to make sure she always feels like it was always there.When we can do a NAC tattoo that 'passes' as the real thing, she will beable to fully accept her new body and move on with joy and excitement tothe next chapter of her life. Nothing in life is perfect, but it can be great!Realism is the only way, and A.R.T. makes sure all your bases arecovered! Make sure you are very skilled with scar tissue before applyingsomething artistic to this fragile skin.By Stacie-RaePrep Stuff™ is a revolutionizing new productfor prepping the skin prior to tattooing! It kills99.9% of germs and microbes including staphwithout removing vital skin oils. Proper skinprep is imperative, as these clients may beimmuno-compromised.apply the stencil!Buy these products at any tattoosupply company.Always do a pre-appointment study of thebody to decide where thenew NAC should be placedto make the body lookgreat. Take care not tomake it look more crooked!MAKINGSTENCILSOnce the skin is totally clean and you havedecided where the nipples should go toflatter and align the body, Use stencil gel toadhere the pressed powder to the area youand your client have decided on. Can beremoved with alcohol and reapplied.
A.R.T.H E A R T I S T S P O T L I G H T N O V E M B E R , 2 0 2 1ARTISTIC & AREOLA RESTORATIVE TATTOO
My superpower is the ability to awaken the trueessence in othersMy grandmother had breast cancer that endedup spreading to her lungs, which ultimately tookher lifeI specialize in the concealment of stretch marks,scars, and hair loss with permanent inkI love to help clients feel more free anduninhibited in their own skin. A transformativesolution that'll last for years.Passion and eye for design, art, photography,and the human shape.I love to invoke a new way of being and essenceby paying close attention to the smallest ofdetails. I find the human form fascinating and lovecollecting nude photography booksI'm a mother, wife and modern day muse ;)Tattoos - Please do not report
What I love most about being a Camouflage Tattoo Artist is amplifying self-acceptance byeliminating negative self-talk. Whether I'm working on scars, stretch marks, or even hairloss, I can't undo or remove what's already been done in my client's past, but what I can dois minimize, reduce and blend in the "barriers" that have prevented them from movingforward. My intention is always to provide space for acceptance to grow...and hopefully forhealing to take place. I find the art of camouflage tattooing is like being a modern day magician. You have theability to distract the eye which I find so illuminating and entertaining. The fact that youcan create the illusion of a realistic, dimensional nipple is magical (and fun!) and it's thereason why I've selected to solely focus on working in the "camouflage" niche.Hopefully, through the work that we do, we can help clients connect back within theirbodies. After all, we're given just one in this lifetime, so to not enjoy it, find pleasure in it,feel grateful for it despite not loving it all of the time, is possible at any time.Issue 8 Nov. 11, 2021The thing I love about art is that it can translate emotion without ever speaking a wordJayd Hernandez, Studio Conceal
What do you love most about the tattoo industry? The people. I have been tattooing over 30 years and I have had such amazing fun experienceswith the artists and all the creative, innovative people in our industry! What is the difference between permablend and World Famous? *World Famous is traditional tattoo ink, tried and true. I have always concentrated on havingthe absolute best quality products. Being a tattoo artist, I knew what I wanted and what wasimportant to me as an artist when it comes to my inks. They must have highest concentrationof pigments and yet flow well into the skin and saturate with power and depth. They muststay looking great over time and heal super-fast. This is World Famous ink :) a dream cometrue for all types of artists. *Perma Blend is a PMU pigment that I worked for years to develop, as I saw the need forbetter quality in PMU after my wife and sister started doing PMU in 2012. They struggledwith the poor-quality pigments that were on the market, dealing with issues such as quickfading and colors that changed in the skin. Therefore, I decided to work with my wife andsister to develop what is the best product for PMU pigments, bringing Perma Blend to life!Made to last and fade true to color. As the years go by and we continue to grow these brands and colors, it’s always been veryimportant to me to listen to the artists.... what are your needs and how can I continuouslymake improvements to make your job easier? Please explain the difference between ink and pigment?Nothing! There is no difference. Pigment is the powder form that is mixed in with liquid tomake ink. Ink is a mixture of pigments. What is the history of World Famous and your family? I started in the tattoo industry as my father was a tattoo artist. I hung around the tattooshop as a kid, and I was always fascinated by this art. I started tattooing right after highschool full time. My Dad finally committed to teaching me his trade. Of course, I took it a littlefurther and opened 7 tattoo shops, and during that time realized the need for products intattooing. Plus, I had a few great ideas of products I wanted to create to make tattooingbetter and even more safe. Back then we made most of our own equipment and mixed ourown inks. I would work all day, go home, and sit in front of the TV soldering needles so I couldwork the next day. Get in the shop early and sterilize them and mix some inks before theshop opened for the day. It was alot of work... hardly had time for artwork, but luckily inthose days most of the people came in and pointed to a stencil on the wall :) so we couldeasily bang out tattoo after tattoo. It was a different world. Today the artists are spoiled,they don’t know how great they have it. Best part is it gives them much more time to work ontheir art. This is why you see such great talent in tattooing and the art has come such a longway. The ability to get great supplies for the craft has afforded the artists more time toactually focus on the art aspect and be confident in their tools of the trade. I am proud ofprogress and where the industry has come over the last 30 years. Some greataccomplishments besides ink for me have been opening up studios in great places. I hadopened in a mall back in 2012, and what I loved was that people who never thought of pullingup to a tattoo shop or were too intimidated to go into a shop before would just quietly strollin to check it out... and possible end up getting tattooed. It took some of the taboo awayfrom walking into a shop. I loved bringing the tattoo world closer and closer to the eyes ofthe public. Then I opened the first and only studio inside a professional sports arena with theNY Islanders hockey team. It was also the first time a professional sports team named astudio as the official tattoo shop of the team :) Most recently, I have opened the first evertattoo studios on a cruise ship... built as part of the ship. Six years in planning with VirginVoyages and Squid Ink was born. I love the excitement of something big and new! What are you most looking forward to in the next chapter of your journey through life? Well as I rounded the corner of turning 50, I wondered will I slow down a bit... but heck no! Iwill continue to do what I love and have a passion for. Continue to travel the world and meettattoo industry people from all over the globe. Who knows, maybe turn it into a documentary.The tattoo industry has made it so I can travel anywhere in the world and have people to callmy friends. Truly an amazing lifelong experience. LOU